From the Principal's Desk

 

Hello Cheetah Families,

Can you believe we have now entered into our final Trimester of the school year? Our students have been working extremely hard, and we will all grow even further academically, socially, and emotionally in our last trimester. I would like to thank each of you for your continued support during this year. Everyone-- teachers, students, staff, parents, snd community partners– has been working so diligently to ensure that our students receive the best experience possible. 

I want to take a moment to share that as a school, we are heartbroken to see the suffering that families in the Ukraine are facing during this volatile time. We stand together with all who are facing unfathomable difficulties. Many in our school community have family members and friends in Russia and in the Ukraine at this time. We want you to know that we are here to support you as well as your child. Regardless of connectedness to this part of the world, we recognize that students may be facing confusion or fear about what is happening. Please refer to our Superintendent's message regarding resources that may be helpful as you navigate difficult conversations with your children as a family. Teachers and staff are working diligently to support our students as well. If your child is struggling during this time and you would like an extra measure of assistance, please do not hesitate to reach out to the school. We are united as one Theuerkauf family, and we are here to support all in our community. 

 

A few updates and reminders:

Report Cards Go Home, March 11, 2022

Second trimester report cards will be sent home by email Friday, March 11th. If you do not receive them or need help accessing the report card, please email us at [email protected].  If you have any questions about your child’s report card, please contact your child’s teacher.

Lost and Found Items to Be Donated:

Next week, we will donate items that have not been claimed in our lost in found from the first two trimesters. Please urge your child to stop by the lost and found to retrieve any coats, sweaters, water bottles, or other items that they may be missing. 

Accelerated Reader Celebration

This coming week, we will be celebrating our students who took part in the AR reading challenge! Many students took part in this challenge, and we look forward to sharing certificates and awards with students in a small celebration on Friday, March 9th, during recess.

As always, thank you for your partnership! Together, we make a difference. 

Yours in service, 

Michelle Williams, Principal

Important Dates

Wednesday, March 9- SSC Meeting 5:00-6:00pm (Zoom)

Wednesday, March 9- Yearbook Class Photos (during the school day)

Thursday, March 10- MVWSD Board of Trustees Meeting, 6:00pm-10:00pm (Zoom)

Friday, March 11- Superintendent Community Check-in, 3:30pm-4:30pm (Zoom)

Friday, March 11- Report cards sent out via email

Friday, March 11- ELAC Meeting 9:00-10:00am (Zoom)

Monday, March 14- Teacher Development Day- No School

Wednesday, March 23- Principal’s Coffee 5:00-6:00pm (Zoom)

Friday, March 25- Cool Cats Assembly (celebrating courage)

 

***Wednesdays: Open Office Hours with the Principal 4:00-5:00pm (use this link)***

 

School News

Reminder: Pick-up and Drop-off Protocols

Parents, our students are our pride and joy, and I know that we all do everything we can as a community to ensure their safety. Please pay close attention to the following reminders:

• We are all in a hurry (especially in the mornings), but please do not speed through the parking lot for any reason whatsoever. There are students crossing to the sidewalks, and we must keep them safe. Our speeds should be well under 5mph at all times in and around the school.

• From 7:30am-6:30pm, please do not get out of your car when you are dropping off your child unless you are in the drop-off lane. Your child should be ready to exit the car when you drive up. Staff members are outside and ready to walk your child to and from their entrance gate. When you leave your car or stop even for a minute, it creates a back-up for all other cars and further traffic problems. If you feel that you need to walk your child to their gate, please park in a lined or otherwise legal parking spot.

• Do not stop or double park in the lane to the left of the drop off lane at the front gate or in the street at the middle/back gates. Again, if you need to walk your child in, you will need to park in a lined or otherwise legal parking spot. 

• For parents crossing near the back and middle gates, please use the crosswalk. There is a crossing guard in place to ensure that all families cross safely. Darting across the street at any area other than the corner crossing puts you in danger and it sends a message to your child that this is acceptable behavior that could later put them in danger.

Thank you for your close attention to these rules and protocols.

 

Reminder: Please upload your child’s completed vaccine card

When your child's vaccine card has their second shot listed, please upload a copy to Powerschool. Vaccine cards will be referred to in the case of a positive COVID exposure for your student, and MVWSD needs accurate data for decisions about COVID protocols. Click here for a video that shows you how to upload documents: https://vimeo.com/606954357.Thank you in advance for uploading your documents now!

 

Reminder: Principal’s Virtual Office Hours

This is just a friendly reminder that you are invited to join me each Wednesday for our informal Principal Office Hours (virtual through Zoom) from 4pm - 5:00pm. Feel free to drop in if you have any questions or if you just want to chat. For office hours, there is no formal agenda, it is a time for you to stop in to say hello, and for us to get to know each other better! I look forward to seeing you

 

PTA News

Yearbook Class Photos

The Yearbook Team will be taking class photos on Wednesday March 9th.  Please make sure your student is ready and prepared. 

 

Yearbook Cover Contest

The Yearbook Team is working full steam on the content and is looking for a cover! Have your Theuerkauf Cheetah participate in the Yearbook Cover Art Contest! Submissions are due March 21. Please see the attached flyer for details.

 

Volunteer Opportunity with Canopy planting trees in the community

The organization Canopy in collaboration with MVWSD is inviting the communities of Theuerkauf and Stevenson to help plant trees on the morning of Saturday, 3/26. It will be along Montecito Ave, near Stevenson and the district office. The attached flyer has more details, Please use this volunteer sign-up link. Hope you will join us!  



District News

 

No Open House events this year

Our schools will not be holding Open House events on March 30 and 31, as we traditionally do. COVID precautions prevent us from bringing many additional people on site, and we are not able to provide a robust virtual Open House experience.

We certainly will miss seeing all of the amazing work from our students and teachers, and look forward to a time we can gather to celebrate students’ work.

 

Parcel Tax Oversight Committee seeks community representatives

MVWSD needs your volunteerism and time. Please consider serving on the Parcel Tax Oversight Committee for the Measure B Parcel Tax.  

The District is seeking two individuals to monitor, provide oversight, and ensure accountability to the funds received by the District, including an annual report to the Board regarding the actual uses of such funds.

Applications can be mailed to: Mountain View Whisman School District, Attn: Dr. Rebecca Westover, Chief Business Officer, 1400 Montecito Ave, Mountain View, CA 94043 or emailed to [email protected]. Application: http://mvw.sd/PTOC

Questions? Please e-mail Dr. Rebecca Westover, Chief Business Officer, at [email protected].

 

Health and Wellness Parenting Tip: Calming Your Mind 

When we feel stressed, our minds tend to jump to the past (I should have...) or to the future (What if...?). The problem is that we cannot change the past nor control the future. Focusing on the present can help us take control of our current situation and help us feel calmer and more relaxed.

Watch this video to learn more about how mindfulness can help you (or your child) be more present and relaxed. 

To calm your (or your child’s) mind:

1. Look around you, and name five things you see. Pick one object, and describe what it looks like, what color, what size, and what shape it is. 

2. Look for four things you can touch. Pick one of those items to touch, and describe how it feels. 

3. Name three things that you can hear. At first, it might seem that there is not much to hear, but listen carefully. Focus on one sound, and describe it. 

4. Look for two things you can smell. Focus on one smell, and describe it.

5. Find one thing you can taste. Focus on the taste and describe it.

You can repeat these steps every time you feel stressed to come back to the present moment. 

 

Get your tickets to the MVEF Spring Gala “The Art of Words”

Join MVEF on Saturday, April 23 for a lively evening that includes dinner, fundraising, and trivia in support of our schools.    Individual tickets are $125.  (Reduced to $110 until March 20!)  Join us from home with a single virtual login for trivia plus access to online fundraising for $50.  Find more information at https://www.mvef.org/ or https://secure.qgiv.com/event/mvefgala/

 

Mentor Tutor Connection Volunteer Information Session - March 8th

You can change the life of a student!  Come learn about volunteer opportunities to Mentor high school students and Tutor students in grades K-8  in our Mountain View and Los Altos schools. Becoming a Mentor or Tutor will add joy to your life and help a student in our local community to a brighter future! There is no obligation to sign up as a volunteer.  You're welcome to just come and learn more about what we do. 

Date:           Tuesday, March 8th

Time:           5:30 - 6:30 pm

Location:     Online via Zoom (URL provided upon registration)

Register:       REGISTER ONLINE

Questions:    programs@mentortutorconnection.org

Information:  MentorTutorConnection.org

 

If you are interested in learning more about the program but cannot attend the information session, please email programs@mentortutorconnection.org for information on how to proceed.

 

March CAC Announcements 

SELPA 1 CAC and the Learning Challenge Committee are your groups for special education and broader learning challenge needs. If you have questions about learning challenges and special education needs, email [email protected] or check out www.selpa1cac.org

3/7 Monday 9 am General Parent/Community Meeting with Special Ed. Directors & Staff, Zoom at 9:00 am for LCC and 9:10 am for CAC. We will be planning for the year, discussing upcoming programs and discussing distance learning and learning challenges. For our agenda, please join our Google group,https://groups.google.com/g/selpa1cac. For the Zoom link for this meeting, Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0vfuqqrDIpG9adTFakjeylekd_SlDHtlCb

3/8 Tuesday 10 am - Parent Chat - Support for parents of teens with mental health challenges. A great place for help and support for challenges with your teens. Please contact [email protected] for Google Meet invite.

Parent Education Event - “FINDING SUCCESS WHEN NAVIGATING CHALLENGING CONVERSATIONS" - this is an alternative dispute resolution training with help from the county SELPA

3/16 Wednesday 7:00-8:30 p.m. Register in advance for this meeting: https://sccoe.to/SELPA1CAC_ChallengingConversations. Attendees of this interactive training will be introduced to a prep-sheet that was inspired by the “Getting to Yes” workbook by Roger Fisher and William Ury. This tool has helped many IEP team members have successful meetings by preparing thinking through interests, options and bringing legitimacy to requests. It is the goal of this training that attendees will leave feeling more prepared and confident for the next IEP team meeting. To be facilitated by Purchin Consulting.

3/30 Wednesday 17-8:30 pm  Evening Let’s Talk -  IEP/504 support group. Have questions about the process to get help for your child? Have an IEP but are not sure how to make changes? Need to vent? This is your confidential group. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYrce6qrz8vGdNbIywjg1vppQq3tHwvruYI

 

City of MV Summer Camp Fair

The City of Mountain View is holding a Summer Camp Fair on Saturday, March 5 from 9 - 11 a.m. at the Mountain View Senior Center. Learn more about summer camps & swim lessons, meet camp staff and drop-off registration for spring & summer programs. Please see the attached flyer for information.

Free CHAC Self-Care and Resilience Workshop 

CHAC Family Resources Center is holding a free online Self-Care and Resilience workshop for parents and caregivers on Fridays from March 4th to April 22nd from 1:00-2:00 PM. This course will provide participants guidance and strategies regarding how to guide children to express their feelings in a nonaggressive way, be more resilient, and teach children to build up relationships. To register, contact Lin Xu at [email protected] or (650) 967-4813.

 

Attachments

 

Summer Camp Fair

Self Care and Resilience

March SELPA